maskedarts

Maskedarts is a multidisciplinary form of contemporary art and performance that places masks at the center of its practice and inquiry. Works in this field combine sculpture, installation, theater, dance, fashion, and digital media to investigate how masks shape perception, identity, and social interaction.

Origins of maskedarts lie in a convergence of theater mask traditions, such as classical Greek theatre and commedia dell’arte, with indigenous masking practices and modern performance art. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, artists began to treat masks less as costumes and more as vehicles for symbolic meaning, privacy, and critique of visibility in contemporary life.

Typical practice includes designing and fabricating masks, sometimes wearable, others fixed as sculptures; incorporating masks into live performances, video works, or virtual environments; and presenting exhibitions that pair masks with sound, text, or interactive elements. Digital masks, augmented reality, and 3D-printed forms have broadened the field beyond traditional materials.

Common themes involve identity and persona, anonymity, power, ritual, memory, and social critique. Debates within maskedarts address cultural sensitivity and appropriation when masking traditions from diverse cultures are borrowed, as well as questions about masking as liberation versus obfuscation.

Practitioners often work in collaborations across disciplines and engage with audiences through galleries, theater venues, festivals, and community workshops. Education programs and artist collectives help sustain the practice and explore new technologies and audience participation.

See also: masked theater, identity in art, performance art.